Here I Am
by allygationz
Summary: AU - Abhijeet has an unexpected visitor who brings up memories from the past.


Abhijeet picked up his phone to answer the call and was informed by the receptionist that he had a visitor, a young woman, he was told, who was waiting for him in the lobby. Sighing, he shuffled some of the papers about on his desk and nodded to himself. Well, yes, he had a lot to do, but he could take a few moments out of his busy day to see what this young woman wanted, he decided. He'd rather enjoy the walk, too, he thought silently to himself. It was harder than people often thought, being stuck behind a desk for long periods of time; claustrophobic, he thought. He was always too happy to be back on his feet, it seemed.

He packed up the papers on his desk into some semblance of neatness, and stood up from his chair, walking around his desk to the door and stepping out of his office. A few heads lifted as he pulled the door closed after himself, but only for a second, and then they were back to work and busy again.

He walked to the lobby feeling not too bad; it wasn't until he caught sight of the young woman in question, never even needing the receptionist to point her out, as she had risen from the chair she'd taken whilst waiting, that he felt suddenly apprehensive and, at the same time, he was overtaken by a wave of familiarity and happiness tinged with pain, which came from his memories.

The young woman looked so alike to his former fiancee, Divya, that it hurt to look at her for too long; at least, to begin with. Just as he was feeling the pain was lessening and it was getting better for him, however, the young woman had offered her hand to shake and was telling him that her name was Ramya and that she would like to talk to him but that she would prefer to do so in a more private setting.

Wondering what this young woman could possibly have to say to him or tell him, he of course agreed, and led the way to a staff break room which, with a quick look inside, he could see was perfect, and so far deserted, that was, until Ramya and he entered. It was a bit too hot for his liking, but he didn't bring it up; he was interested in what the young woman might have to say.

All of a sudden, he noticed that she looked hesitant, and wondered if he had made her uncomfortable somehow, but hoped that he hadn't, all the same.

Ramya told him that her mother had recently passed away, at which he felt a great sadness; they had never really gotten around to catching up after the break up, nor had they managed to remain amicable or build up a strictly friendship-based relationship. Her mother, Divya, had written letters her whole life, Ramya informed him, and he remembered that he'd often witnessed this with his own eyes and often he had tried to affectionately tease his fiancee into telling him what she had written in one particular letter or another.

Needless to say, it had never worked. Now, to be hearing of it again and with his memories rushing back at incredible pace, fighting back the years and throwing them aside with careless abandon, he felt as though he would be best served to seat himself at one of the chairs, yet could not bring himself to in case the young woman did not feel like sitting herself and would thus be left standing alone.

Looking at her, he clearly saw her mother in her. For a long moment, he wondered how old she was, and it wasn't until he realised what he was thinking that he realised, also, why he was. The young woman, he could see now, had not inherited her mother's eyes, for all of their similarities. Instead, the eyes that he saw gazing back at him were his own eyes.

A wave of shock rippled through him, but was quickly surpassed by wonder and delight and yet more pain. That was when he heard the words, "You're my father," and then Ramya seemed to fall silent, looking, once more, awkward in this place where she must have felt out of place and as though she was imposing, perhaps distracting him from his work, which was ever so important.

He began to shake his head, to say, no, she wasn't imposing or distracting him from work; very possibly, she'd brought him the best news of his life. Before he could say this, though, Ramya had stepped forward and draped her arms around him lightly in a hug that he would never, ever have felt the slightest compulsion to fight her on, and he didn't. She was his daughter; if he'd doubted it before, he knew it then; holding her in his arms, he was completely certain.

"I always wondered what you must be like, what you must look like; what it would be like to have you hold me, just once," Ramya whispered emotionally, "and now I know."

He felt tears prickle the at back of his eyes. Hoarsely, he said, "I never knew; I never even suspected."

"I know," she replied gently, and it was clear that she did understand; that she did not resent him for not having been a part of her life. "Here I am, and so are you," she added. "I think we're going to be great friends."

At her words, he knew that he would do anything it took for that to become a reality, for them to be friends and, possibly, for them to one day be father and daughter.

A quiet cough from the door drew his attention to the doorway, which was now no longer filled with the door, but Freddy. "Would you like something to drink, boss?" Freddy asked, to which he shook his head, stepping away from his daughter with difficulty. He'd have liked to have held her for just a moment longer, without Freddy's pointed, slightly confused look. Holding her, all of the scenes that he must have missed when she was growing up had flashed through his mind, and he'd felt like, somehow, he would have to find a way to make it okay now, to give her a father now, and to be a father, too.

From the other side of the door, he heard a commotion and understood that soon Freddy, Ramya and he would be joined by the rest of the team and quickly rushed to thank Ramya for visiting him and offered her his number for when she wanted to ring, perhaps, when she thought any time would be a good time for her or was appropriate. Maybe one day they'd go out for lunch together and talk some more.

Of course, Ramya agreed quickly, and assured him that she would call, before he walked her to the door of the break room and stepped out after her to show her out. Passing the pair on the way to the break room, Sachin, Vivek, Kajal and Tasha didn't think anything of the young woman; she might have been anyone else they dealt with in the line of their work daily. Only Daya, lagging behind the group, offered him more than a passing nod, adding a thoughtful second glance.

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Disclaimer

_C.I.D._ © B. P. Singh, Pradeep Uppoor; Fireworks Production and Sony Entertainment Television.


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